The New York Yankees decided to release Jacoby Ellsbury and Greg Bird on Wednesday. It is safe to say that Ellsbury and Bird were considered major disappointments in pinstripes and never lived up to expectations.
Ellsbury, a center fielder, signed a seven-year contract worth $153 million with the Bronx Bombers on December 3, 2013, after playing his first seven Major League Baseball seasons with New York’s top rival, the Boston Red Sox. Ellsbury’s first season in New York (2014) was respectable, as he batted .271 with 16 home runs and 70 runs batted in with a team-high 156 hits, 27 doubles, and 39 stolen bases.
However, Ellsbury only had 23 home runs over the next three seasons combined. Over the last two seasons, Ellsbury has not played at all due to various injuries to his oblique, hip, foot and shoulder.
Financially, Ellsbury will be doing just fine. He is still owed $26.3 million by the Yankees over the next two years according to ESPN.
Bird meanwhile struggled even more than Ellsbury, as he was consistently under the Mendoza line. Bird batted .190, .199 and .171 over the last three seasons after the first baseman batted .261 in his rookie season of 2015.
Like Ellsbury, Bird had his fair share of injuries. He missed the entire 2016 Major League Baseball season with a torn labrum. Then, over the last three seasons, Bird has suffered multiple injuries to his foot and ankle.
The Yankees currently have Luke Voit number one on their depth chart at first base and Aaron Hicks number one on their depth chart in center field. Expect the Yankees to make to be extremely active in free agency, as they look to improve their offense and starting pitching rotation.
